White Sox are circling the Mets' backup catcher, but New York isn't budging

The trade deadline always finds the guy nobody outside the building was talking about, and this year that's Luis Torrens. The 30-year-old Mets backup catcher has quietly become one of the most-wanted names on the board, with multiple teams reportedly checking in before the August 3 deadline.

Jon Heyman

@JonHeyman

t.co/AiGKJo6Ila White Sox and others are targeting Luis Torrens, but the Mets do not want to trade their beloved backup backstop

Jon Heyman's report says the White Sox are among the suitors, and that tracks. Chicago is deep in a rebuild and always in the market for a cheap, controllable defensive catcher to pair with whatever young arms they're trying to develop. Torrens fits that mold about as well as anyone on the trade market right now.

Here's the thing that makes the Mets' reluctance make sense: Torrens isn't just some replacement-level backup they can flip for a lottery ticket. He's widely regarded as one of the better defensive catchers in the sport, consistently near the top of the league in framing metrics and pop time, and he's matched the league lead among catchers with a 41% caught-stealing rate this season. That's the profile of a guy who wins you games you don't notice him winning.

The extension complicates things too. Torrens signed a 2-year, $11.5 million deal with the Mets back in May, and trading a guy you just re-upped a couple months later is generally considered bad organizational form. It signals either you evaluated wrong or you're cashing in fast, and neither is a great look. That's likely part of why Heyman frames New York as unwilling to move him even with the White Sox and others sniffing around.

MLB Trade Rumors

@mlbtraderumors

Mets Rumors: Holmes, Peralta, Alvarez, Torrens t.co/s331tAMB56

MLB Trade Rumors lumping Torrens in with names like Francisco Alvarez, Clay Holmes and David Peralta shows just how much the Mets' entire roster is under a microscope right now heading into the deadline. Torrens being on that list at all, even as a 'they don't want to move him' storyline, tells you rival execs are at least trying their luck.

Backup catchers rarely headline deadline coverage, but Torrens' defensive profile and his light offensive numbers make him exactly the kind of buy-low target contenders and rebuilders both chase. Whether the Mets actually hold the line through August 3 is the thing to watch — teams say no right up until the offer gets too good to refuse.